A damaging video could haunt Rand Paul’s 2016 bid

Let me first state that I think the GOP’s foreign policy under George W. Bush was a disaster. I think many of you would agree with me that it would be better for the GOP to go back to a more modest foreign policy, similar to George Bush I.

And on this note, Senator Rand Paul, R-KY, has actually been a pretty good voice. He’s been calling on Republicans to second-guess the immediate impulse to solve international problems through military intervention.

But this video of Rand Paul from 2009 is pretty outrageous. In the video discovered by the leftist Mother Jones, he notes (correctly) that Dick Cheney, who served as Defense Secretary under the elder George Bush, did not support invading Iraq back in 1991. And that we all know that as Vice President under the younger George Bush, Dick Cheney changed his mind.

But Rand Paul thinks the reason Cheney changed his mind is pure greed. He thinks Cheney supported the war in Iraq only because of the money it made him. (Start video at 6:30)

I think Dick Cheney was dead wrong about the war, about torture, about just about everything on foreign policy. (And thank God that Cheney did not run for President!)

But I do not believe, for one minute, that he supported a bloody war only because it would pad his bank accounts. After all, Dick Cheney was rich before Halliburton. And if he never had worked for Halliburton, he would have made millions elsewhere. No, I think Cheney is a True Believer. After 9/11, Cheney was going to be an aggressive supporter of war, no matter what.

It’s videos like these which will likely prevent Rand Paul from the nomination. Enough Republicans are going to decide it’s not worth a gamble to nominate this man. Not just the rather amazing claim made in it, but the additional worry that more such videos will surface (with other rhetorical bombs).

I know that there are many Catholics worried about the omnipotent state who are attracted to Rand Paul’s call for scaling back government. But let this video be a warning that Rand Paul might not the best champion of your cause.

The views expressed here are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of CatholicVote.org

About Author

Joshua Mercer is a co-founder of CatholicVote.org, where he serves as Political Director. Mercer is also regular contributor with Catholic Pulse. Mercer previously served as Washington Correspondent for the National Catholic Register and Chairman for Students for Life of America. He lives in Michigan with his wife and six children.